Richmond's Gordon Pihl Signs to Play Baseball at Brunswick Community College

Richmond's Gordon Pihl (left) signed his National Letter of Intent Monday to play baseball for Brunswick Community College.Photo courtesy of Kyle Pillar.

ROCKINGHAM - With his parents, coaches and teammates surrounding him inside the media center of Richmond Senior High School, Raider catcher Gordon Pihl signed his letter of intent with Brunswick Community College and will become a Dolphin next year.

Located in Brunswick County, N.C., BCC is a junior college and its baseball program competes in the NJCAA. The Dolphins baseball team is currently 8-8 in 2018.

Pihl admitted Monday that he was on the verge of signing with Methodist University, but he said it ultimately came down to a financial decision to choose BCC.

"I wanted to make sure I made the right call," the senior said. "Brunswick was a better fit, and I have a lot of faith in (Dolphins) coach (Robbie) Allen."

Pihl said that Allen told him that there would be a spot open, especially at the catcher position, but first and third base could be in his future, as well. That won't be a problem, according to Pihl.

Raider head coach Ricky Young agrees.

"Gordon's worked hard in the weight room. He's still got some improvements to do, but he's working hard," said Young. "He's off to a good start, and I think he's worked hard at that."

The senior catcher, who stands at 6’-4”, 225 pounds, has not only provided stellar play defensively, but has an RBI single, double and run scored for a Raider team that's started 4-1.

When it came time to make a decision, Pihl put his trust in Young, who helped guide him and give advice along the way.

"The most important thing is to find a good fit," Young said. "To find where he’s going to be comfortable and not where everybody else wants him to go."

Pihl said Young played a huge part in his choosing Brunswick, arranging a meeting with Allen, letting him know the Dolphins were looking for a catcher and setting up a camp date.

"Coach Allen pulled me aside (at the camp), and a couple days later he wanted to pull me up. I met with the players and after that I was hooked and made the decision," Pihl said, and looking into the future of his remaining Raider baseball days, there's only one thing on he and his teammates' minds.

"State championship. We talk about it every day," he said. "We talked mainly this summer that we were capable of it. We all work hard together and have team chemistry and try to be someone the younger guys can look up to.

"Everybody works hard,” he concluded. “There's no slackers on this team, and we work hard to get to where we want to be at the end of the year."